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Data Anxiety

Meaning

Data Anxiety is a contemporary psychological phenomenon characterized by feelings of stress, overwhelm, or fear resulting from the constant collection, interpretation, and management of personal health and wellness metrics. This anxiety arises when individuals feel compelled to obsessively track their biometrics, such as heart rate variability, sleep scores, or hormonal fluctuations, leading to hyper-vigilance or distress over non-optimal results. It represents a disconnect where the pursuit of health optimization through data ironically compromises mental well-being and the natural, intuitive connection to one’s own body signals. The clinical concern is that this can exacerbate underlying stress and HPA axis dysfunction.